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The portrayal of women in literature
Portrayal of women in literature
Portrayal of women in literature
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The similarities of the motives behind the actions of both Kristine and Nora in A Doll's House could be used to compare the similarities of these two characters even though these characters are in reverse roles throughout this play by Henrick Ibsen. Kristine and Nora marry for money, use Krogstad, and learn a valuable life lesson. Therefore, the correlations of Kristine and Nora's motives demonstrate the similarities between these two characters.
Kristine does what she believes is right at the time by marrying Mr. Linde for money instead of marrying him because she loved him due to the fact that her mother was ill and she had two younger brothers who needed financial security for which Kristine herself is unable to provide, being a woman living during Victorian times. Even though Kristine stands behind her reasons for marrying Mr. Linde she has been left, for the past three years since her husband's death and subsequent loss of his business, taking care of her mother and brothers, ensuring their financial security. In that time, Kristine's mother passes away, her brothers become self-sufficient, and her husband dies leaving her nothing; no money, no children, "not even a broken heart to grieve over" (779). However, Kristine has yet to become bitter over her situation; instead she picks herself up and moves on by traveling to visit Nora in hopes of a brighter future. Nora also marries for money however; she does so for selfish reasons; as dictated by the society in which she resides, since a woman is seen in a subservient position during the Victorian Era. Nora was used to being spoiled and treated as Torvald's "doll wife, just as at home I was Daddy's doll child" (819). Therefore, Nora is not bitter over her situation and actually thrives in the knowledge of her secret over Torvald and, her perceived, subsequent brighter future. After ten years, Nora believes she has everything exactly the way she has planned it; enough money to repay her debt, Torvald's never finding out about the loan, and living happily ever after.
Kristine is informed, as she is already aware, that Krogstad was in an unhappy marriage and is now a widow. During act III, Kristine arranges for a meeting with Krogstad where she informs him that she is "like a broken woman clinging to the wreck of her life.
In the play “A Doll’s House”, marriage is merely a social formality. Torvald and Nora, husband and wife, share merely a few intimate moments throughout the entire novel and their relationship is devoid of any affection at all. The setting of the play “A Doll’s House” is 19th century Norway and the norms and beliefs of this era play a huge role in defining the role of Torvald as a husband, and Nora as a wife. The husband in this era is supposed to be the sole guardian of the house, responsible for taking care of the families financial requirements and ensuring a high standing for the family in society. Torvald believes that Nora is confined to looking after their children and basically taking care of the physical aspects of their household, and Nora feels so oppressed by her husband that she helps him in a time of dire need without even telling him. This incident occurs in the scene where Torvald falls dangerously sick and is too foolish to spend money on foreign treatment that could save his life, Nora sensing the grave danger goes behind Torvald’s back and collects money to save Torvalds life by committing the crime of forgery.
Upon reading “A Doll’s House” by Henrik Ibsen, many readers may find the character Nora to be a rather frivolous spending mother of three who is more concerned about putting up a front to make others think her life is perfect, rather than finding herself. At the beginning of the play, this may be true, but as the play unfolds, you see that Nora is not only trying to pay off a secret debt, but also a woman who is merely acting as her husbands “doll” fulfilling whatever he so asks of her. Nora is not only an independent woman who took a risk, but also a woman whose marriage was more along the lines of a father-child relationship.
Nora and Torvald were very poor and had to watch what they spent, but after Torvald earned a new position at the bank where he works, they no longer had to worry about how much money they have spent. Mrs. Linde, Nora’s friend, came to speak to Nora about her life and what has gone on since her husband has died. Nora then begins to tell her how Torvald became sick and how they had to travel to Italy so he could recover, but since they didn’t have enough money she illegally borrowed money for the trip and has been trying to repay the debt before he or anyone could notice. Krogstad, an employee at the bank, then black mails Nora and threatens to tell her husband that she stole money if she does not convince him to let him keep his job. Mrs. Linde and Krogstad both reveal that they had fallen for each other and she tries to convince him to not tell Torvald of his wife’s secret, but instead she tells him to leave the note for him to find out. Torvald then finds the letter and is angry. He tells Nora mean things and calls her a liar and then tells her she will not be allowed to raise their kids. Once Helene, their housemaid, brings another letter containing the contract the tries to apologize and ask forgiveness. Nora then begins to express her feelings of how they do not belong together and explains that she feels like a “doll” that is played with and admired. She then decides to leave Torvald. Mrs. Linde and Krogstad both used Nora’s secret to get what they wanted. Although, Mrs. Linde didn’t know her secret at the beginning she still used it against her at the end because she felt that Torvald needed to know what she had
This becomes one of the main driving forces of Ibsen’s play. (Quote from Torvald and the money). It immediately distinguishes the differences in gender roles and morals in Norway during the late 1800’s. While Nora is willing to give the porter twice what is owed, we assume she is full of holiday spirit; Torvald has a much more sensible outlook on financial concerns. While he jokingly calls her his little spendthrift, he asserts that her lack of understanding is a result of her gender “Nora, my Nora, that is just like a woman” (Ibsen). Torvald believes that her place in the home is simply ornamental, a trophy that serves as decoration for his home. Torvald is constantly referring to her through the use of pet names such as (quote pet names from book) and only ever refers to her by name when he is scolding her. Not only does Torvald see her as his doll, but also as her child (quote near end of story). By keeping Nora dependent and obedient to him, he plays the role of Nora’s second father. Nora eventually sees that her daughter is being treated in the same manner that she was her entire life, as a
Henrik Ibsen’s “A Doll’s House” is a controversial play focusing on the marriage of Nora and Torvald Helmer. The play is filled with symbols that represent abstract ideas and concepts. These symbols effectively illustrate the inner conflicts that are going on between the characters. Henrik Ibsen’s use of symbolism such as the Christmas tree, the locked mailbox, the Tarantella, Dr. Rank’s calling cards, and the letters allows him to give a powerful portrayal to symbolize aspects of characters and their relationship to each other.
This is adequate reason to examine what makes an Ibsen drama unique, or at least similar to his other works, and to expound upon such. Throughout both plays, each main character exhibits a decay from the norm in their social persona. In Dollhouse, Nora who at first seems a silly, childish woman, is revealed to be intelligent and motivated though the play, and, by the play's conclusion, can be seen to be a strong-willed, independent thinker. She develops an awareness for the truth about her life as Torvald's devotion to an image at the expense of the creation of true happiness becomes more and more evident to her. When Nora calls him petty and swears about the house, and when Krogstad calls him by his first name it angers Torvald notably, and this anger at what he sees to be insubordination and improper etiquette heightens her awareness of the falsities being put in place by Mr. Helmer.
It is discernable as we notice, how Nora is treated by her husband, Torvald. Torvald gives no-regard to the intelligence of Nora and pictures her as an ornament that adorns his household. “…but our home has never been anything but a playroom, I`ve been your doll wife, just as I used to be papa`s doll child.” It is obvious that Nora does not have much control over her life and over any money “You might give me money Torvald…” Nora is quite intelligent and knows a thing or two about budgeting money, she has been able to pay her loan in small increments and at the same time buy things for her household. “I have had to save a little here and there, where I could, you understand.” Torvalds pride prevents her from reaching her full potential and doing something constructive in her
A Doll 's house is one of the modern works that Henrik Ibsen wrote. He was called the father of modern drama .He was famous for writing plays that related to real life. A Doll 's House is a three-act play that discusses the marriage in the 19th century. It is a well-made play that used the first act as an exposition. The extract that will be analyzed in the following paragraphs is a dialogue between Nora and the nurse that takes care of her children. This extract shows how she was afraid not only of Krogstad blackmail, but also of Torvald 's point of view about those who committed any mistake. Torvald says that the mothers who tell lies should not bring up children as they are not honest . Nora is also lying to her family and to Torvald. So she is afraid because she thinks she maybe 'poisoning ' her own children. The analysis of this extract will be about of Nora 's character, the theme, and the language in A Doll 's House.
In the play A Doll House, by Henrik Ibsen, Nora and Torvald’s marriage seems to have been torn apart by Krogstad’s extortion plot, but in reality their marriage would have ended even without the events in the play. Torvald’s obsession with his public appearance will eventually cause him to break the marriage. Nora’s need for an identity will ultimately cause her to leave Torvald, even without Krogstad’s plot. Lastly, the amount of deception and dishonesty between Torvald and Nora would have resulted in the same conclusion sooner or later. In this essay, I will argue that Nora and Torvald’s relationship would have ended even without Krogstad’s extortion plot.
Kristine, Nora's childhood friend, is the wisdom and support Nora needs to grow up. Kristine is a woman who has been in the real world, unlike other wives of Torvald's friends. At the same time, Kristine is a friend from Nora's childhood, a person who she can tell her problems to and relate to in some way. Also, unlike everyone else who surrounds Nora, Kristine tells her the truth, she does not pamper her.
Henrik Ibsen paints a sad picture of the sacrificial role of women throughout all social economical classes in his play “A Doll House”. The story is set in the late 19th century and all minor female characters had to overcome adversity to the expense of love, family and self-realization, in order to lead a comfortable life. While the main female protagonist Nora struggles with her increasingly troubled marriage, she soon realizes, she needs to change her life to be happy as the play climaxes. Her journey to self-discovery is achieved by the threat of her past crime and her oppressing husband, Torvald and the society he represents. The minor female characters exemplifying Nora’s ultimate sacrifice.
Krogstad creates an elaborate plan to blackmail Nora and tell her husband about her forgery if she does not persuade Torvald to keep him employed. This would lead to many legal consequences for Nora and would disrupt the family and Torvald 's business as he would take full blame for her illegal actions. Nora 's secret begins to eat at her as she contemplates what she is going to do to solve the problem. To the audience, Nora 's impression has been completely altered. The secret that Nora possesses, reveals to the audience that her character is much more than just a trophy-wife and an object. In the meantime, Nora begins to look for different ways in order to pay back all of her debts. Nora explains that she, "was lucky enough to get a lot of copying to do... [like] working and earning money" (Ibsen Act 2). Nora begins to deter from that of a traditional wife, and takes on the role of the man and begins working to pay back all of the debt. The audience begins to recognize that Nora is evolving into a determined and brave wife who is willing to protect her secret to support her
an example of the individual’s struggle against society” (Mitchell 136). She was punished severely for something that could be considered a petty crime and the crime ultimately led to her and Torvald’s separation and her leaving the house. In addition, “Christine Linde and Nils Krogstad’s subplot ending in marriage happens at the same time as Nora’s break with Torvald.” (Davies 51) The sharp contrast between the two creates conflict within the audience members because Krogstad is being rewarded for blackmail as Nora is being punished for saving her husband’s life.
Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House is a three-act play significant for its attitude toward marriage norms. In the drama, Ibsen explores idealism between the wife Nora and her husband Helmer. Nora’s and Helmer’s idealism forces the pair to see themselves and each other starring in various idealist scenarios of female sacrifice and heroic male rescue. As a play, the scenes are act out on stage. The staging of a house reveals the dramaturgical aspects and dynamics of the play. The presence of the house is significant to the depiction of women on stage. The action of the play traces Nora’s relationship to the house. Ibsen’s play focuses on the aspect of the expected idealism of the wife and husband, and how the domestic abode can hinder freedom.
In "A Doll's House", Ibsen portrays the bleak picture of a role held by women of all economic classes that is sacrificial. The female characters in the play back-up Nora's assertion that even though men are unable to sacrifice their integrity, "hundreds of thousands of woman have." Mrs. Linde found it necessary to abandon Krogstad, her true but poor love, and marry a richer man in order to support her mother and two brothers. The nanny has to abandon her children to support herself by working for Nora. Though Nora is economically advantaged, in comparison to the other female characters, she leads a hard life because society dictates that Torvald be the marriages dominant member. Torvald condescends Nora and inadvertently forces Nora to hide the loan from him. Nora knows that Torvald could never accept the idea that his wife, or any other woman, could aid in saving his life.